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Chapter 7
Dr Russ laid himself down to sleep that night in the surgeon’s official cabin in the wardroom, declining Jack’s offer of continued use of the coach (“it would be invidious, my dear, and I should hate to cause strife in your command”, to which Jack had no reply). He intended to sleep through till breakfast at eight bells in the morning watch, but he had reckoned without an early-rising captain, eager to show off the securing of his vessel’s meager armament by the ordinance people. At four bells in the morning watch Stephen found the door to his cabin knocking, with a muffled voice on the other side of it offering the captain’s compliments, and did Doctor Russ wish to see the ordinance team lock down the cannon?
“What are you blathering on about, Mister Holley? And what are you doing in my cabin,” asked Stephen, having slept through and ignored five minutes of the midshipman pounding on the steel door with a knocker designed for the purpose, finally using a pass key to enter the cabin and shake the wire ropes holding the doctor’s cot.
“Captain’s compliments and would you like to see the ordinance team lock out the plasma arc cannon,” repeated Holley, then, “oh do come, sir, it’s ever so much fun. Mister Veight and the skipper are with them on the bridge and if we don’t hurry they’ll have started,” and he chivied Stephen into his clothes, through the wardroom without so much as a cup of coffee, and up the companion to the bridge.
Here they found Mister Henreid, the officer of the watch, along with the helmsman, but many of the other officers were present as well, speaking amongst themselves and with the red-jacketed ordinance people. Everyone looked up as Stephen and Holley walked in. “Ah,” said the captain, “Doctor Russ. So glad you could join us, you wouldn’t want to miss this. Are we all here now? Where is Mister Barus?”
“Here, sir,” said the Midshipman, hurriedly stuffing his phone in his pocket, where it continued to chirp and chime. “Mister Barus,” said the captain, “what is the rule about phone use unrelated to duty when on duty?”
Mister Barus flushed. In his pocket, his phone uttered an unhelpful but fittingly mournful four-tone melody. “There is to be none, sir.”
“You will report to me once you are off duty to discuss this,” said the captain. "Gentlemen,” he said to the ordinance team and his assembled officers, “and ladies, let us start with gun number three.”
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